Toys in the Attic - Aerosmith (CD 1993)

There are great records, and there are records that everybody knows so they automatically become great. Sometimes those are great, too, yet most of the time what people remember is not the album itself, rather it s the impact a record in question or a couple of songs from it have had on a particular generation or even a music genre.



TOYS IN THE ATTIC sure is one such record.



In 1975 Aerosmith hit it big. Took them two albums to get there, but when five Boston-rooted Rolling Stones wannabees finally improved on their purpose namely, more songs about sex, and closer to Rolling Stones more importantly, when Steven Tyler realized he felt at home most with dirty lyrics, and Joe Perry realized he would strike home best with even more dirty riffs Aerosmith third album, which by the way musically couldn t had departed from the Stones further, finally hit it big. Saying it was a real ten inch actually means to say nothing. When the Boston boys hit it big, boy, they hit it BIG.


Why 3 stars? I know, you re surprised. Or maybe you re not.


The record was loved (and bought) for actually two songs. Heck, you can go thru the whole thing and if you really like BIG Aerosmith records like Pump , Permanent Vacation and Nine Lives (no mercy 4 Get a Grip & Just Push Play ) and songs like Love in an Elevator , Living on the Edge or Taste of India (just don t mention Jaded to me) ok, or Jaded you ll find nothing of the kind here. Nuthin , but two songs.




Backstroke lover always hidin' 'neath the covers
'Til I talked to your daddy he say
He said you ain't seen nothin' 'til you're down on a muffin
Then you're sure to be a changin' your way
I met a cheerleader was a real young bleeder (ooh, boy now that line is sleazy)
Oh the times I could reminisce
'Cause the best things of lovin' with her sister and her cousin
Only started with a little kiss

A like this


When WALK THIS WAY got the airplay, the band became a sensation. Not simply was the song cool, it was bad@*ss. A mix of hard rock (not like late 70s/early 80s hard rock, this still is a little mellow) and hip-hop, it was, like AMG puts it, a turning point twice for the former and once for the latter. We re all familiar with the 90s rap metal. Well, this is the first song to have rap lyrics and electric guitar cling together, and boy, does Joe Perry s guitar sing.


The song s about uhm I bet you know what it s about.


Jammed between this song and the other big hit (hey, you know which one that is) on Toys in the Attic is BIG TEN INCH RECORD, which is just as cool as those other two. To a seemingly harmless bluesy tune, Tyler delivers some of his sexiest lyrics yet. I m not sure you re ready to hear it. Although you might be ready to hear it.


Last night I tried to tease her
I gave my love a little pinch
She said now stop that jivin'
Now whip out'chor big 10 inch...


ow one more?

My girl don't go for smokin'
And liquor just make her flinch
Seems she don't go for nothin'
'Cept for my big 10 inch...


Tell me it's not sincere. And the whole song s like that. Time for the real thing, now.


SWEET EMOTION was the first single off Toys and actually is the song that has carried Aerosmith through. It s hard indeed to compare the two, it s even harder to choose from them if Walk this Way was a small musical revolution, then Sweet Emotion simply has made this band unique. Joe Perry again delivers incredible riffs, giving the song most of its hard rock sound, whereas Stivie does an amazing job on the vocals this was the first time Aerosmith sounded like Aerosmith we know now the Aerosmith of Jennie s Got a Gun , Love in an Elevator , Living on the Edge . This isn t a ballad, nor is this a rocker. It s a mid-tempo song, beautiful, sexy and oozing danger at the same time. It was a sure 100 % hit, and over these years it has lost none of its potential. It s Sweet Emotion . Enter Aerosmith.


Standin' in the front just a shakin' your **@**ss
I'll take you backstage you can drink from my glass
We'll talk about something you can sure understand
'Cause a month on the road and I'll be eatin' from your hand




That s actually it. The rest of the record is mostly skippable (it just... 4 the most part it drags), and doesn t compare either to the two (uhm, three) aforementioned highlights or to what Aerosmith themselves would later become. Nor does it compare to most of those other definitive hard rock albums of the 70s. Yet Toys in the Attic is one of them.


The impact Walk this Way and Sweet Emotion , actually the impact the band s sound has had on many boys and girls in the mid- and late 70s is hard to underestimate. There s a whole generation that grew up rocking to these songs there s a whole lot of bands that stem from these roots. Finally, there s one of America s greatest rock n roll bands, and arguably one of the greatest rock n roll bands ever, that walked out of the attic into the light. Enough to make this record great.


...if not almost enough to give it four stars. For die-hard collectors and those interested in a deeper understanding of Aerosmith sound at the time of their first success